This document summarizes a student project on sustainability, composting, and organic gardening. It describes visits to a school composting project and a community garden. At the school, students learned about composting processes and participated in mixing and turning the compost. The community garden utilizes compost and organic practices. The students planted seeds, toured the garden, and learned from the garden's coordinator. Reflections emphasized the value of hands-on learning and community involvement in sustainability efforts.

1. Sustainability, Com, &
Culture
Final Project Com. 344

2. Overview
 Compost project at Pahoa High and Intermediate
School
 Participated in their compost project
 Learned about the idea of composting
 Enzymes at work
 Aerobic vs. Anaerobic
 Sifting of soil
 Relating to sustainability
 Supports Organic Agriculture

3. Overview con’t
 Community Garden visit at Kaiao Gardens
 http://alohahilo.wordpress.com/kaiao-garden-kaiao-
garden-camp/
 Planted seeds
 Toured the garden
 Bodhi Searles guided us through the process and
willingly shared her knowledge, experience, and
kindness.

4. What is Compost?
 A plant matter that has been decomposed and recycled
as a fertilizer and soil amendment.
 Compost is a key ingredient in organic farming.
 At its most essential, the process of composting requires
simply piling up waste outdoors and waiting a year or
more.
 Modern, methodical composting is a multi-step, closely
monitored process with measured inputs of water, air
and carbon- and nitrogen-rich materials.

5. Composting cont…
 The decomposition process is aided by shredding
the plant matter, adding water and ensuring proper
aeration by regularly turning the mixture. Worms
and fungi further break up the material.

6. Why is it Important?
 Compost can be rich in nutrients. It is used in gardens,
landscaping, horticulture, and agriculture.
 The compost itself is beneficial for the land in many
ways, including as a soil conditioner, a fertilizer,
addition of vital humus or humic acids, and as a natural
pesticide for soil. In ecosystems, compost is useful for
erosion control, land and stream reclamation, wetland
construction, and as landfill cover.

7. Living Sustainable with the Idea
of Composting
 Use of Natural Waste
 Recycling
 Good for Organic Gardening
 The end product of compost is nutrient rich soil

8. The Start of Composting at Pahoa
High & Intermediate School
(Compost that requires
air)
In Pahoa’s compost was:
Old Newspaper
Horse Manure
Grass
Wood and Brush Chips
Grass cuttings
Coffee grinds with the
filters
Fruit & Vegetables
Egg shells
Brown leaves and
branches to balance
nutrients
**Usually takes about 4-6
weeks to be ready to use**

9. (Compost that does not require air)
In Pahoa’s compost there was:
• Coffee Grinds
• Egg Shells
• Mango peels
 **Usually takes about six months to be ready to
use**

10. How composting works…
 After putting everything together and wetting it,
bacteria found throughout the organic material
starts to break it down. Horse manure is key, it
already contains much of the bacteria vital for this
process. Decomposition produces heat, which is
why students must dump out the compost regularly
and turn it. Because heat causes evaporation,
students must turn and water it often. They do this
because the bacteria needs moisture in order to
make the process happen.

11. We watched as the kids mixed
everything together and began
the project in which we were
honored to be a part of.

12. We got down and dirty with the compost which was already two weeks old. As you can see, the amount
of water and sifting of the compost broke it down faster than expected. In picture 1. Jovey is holding the
anaerobic compost. Students in Pahoa started working on this compost 3 months ago. Enzymes were
added to neutralize the foul smell. The following pictures are of us helping the students mix the aerobic
compost.

13. Kaiao Garden
 Located behind the Boys &
Girls Club in Hilo, Hi
 Was started in February of
2005
 Community Garden
 It is a non-profit project
 Open to the community for
anyone who wants to plant,
volunteer, grow, etc.
 Organic

15. Bodhi Searles
 One of the co-founders
of the Kaiao Garden.
 Devotes much of her
time and effort to keep
this garden successful
and sustainable
 Gracious, humble, kind,
and very respectable.

16. Planting Seeds
Some Tips We Learned:
Water is Essential
 We watered the soil before planting to soften it
Depth Matters
 The seed pit has to be twice as large as the seed
Bury the seed and lightly water
Water twice a day after that

17. Composting
 They have their own composting pit
 Very similar to Pahoa’s composting project
 Great use of natural waste to keep the garden
organic and free of pesticides

18. Kaiao Garden = Hawaiian
Culture
#1 Rule of Kaiao Garden:
Kuleana – Responsibility
 Responsibility for the garden
 Responsibility for your self
 Responsibility for others
 Responsibility for the planet

19. Relating to Hawaiian
Culture
 Like the olden Hawaiian days, Kaiao Garden thrives
off the land
 Nothing is wasted, most things are recyclable
 Use sustainable resources
 Un-reliant on modern resources such as pesticides,
fertilizers, and hormones
 Relies on natural resources such as organic waste,
microorganisms, insects, plants, water, and even
weeds to keep the garden happy and sustainable

20. Relating to
Communication
 Sustainability, composting, gardening, and
communication all have a special relationship. In
order for the spread of sustainability, composting,
and organic gardening, there needs to be
communication amongst those to encourage the
importance. We had to communicate throughout
our project, both with each other as well as the
people we contacted who were willing to allow us
to make our project successful. Communication was
key, everything we’ve done involved
communicating with people as well as the
environment.

21. Team member 1 Reflection
 From this project, along with all the other
sustainability classes I’ve taken, I have learned a lot
but I feel as if this class taught me the most. Being
able to actually get into a garden and learn how to
properly plant plants, and actually work on
composting instead of just reading about it really
allowed me to understand the concept and how
important it is to the world. By being able to work
hands on to try an create a greener world was very
inspiring.

22. Team member 2 Reflection
 I really enjoyed participating on these projects with
my group. I learned a lot about reusing waste to
make compost that can be used for nutrients in
gardens. Tying it to this Sustainability class, I realize
the importance of starting a Community Garden.
We can create cultural growth and help our
community when we start participating in a garden.
We should take responsibility to take care of this
earth and by participating in gardens like the Kaiao
Garden. They are an amazing organization. They
are non-profit and relies solely on the help of the
community to take action and be part of.

23. Team member 3 Reflection
 I learned some valuable information doing this project.
Composting with the students at Pahoa school brought
back memories, as I was once a student there, but more
than that the students taught me a lot about composting.
They knew exactly what was in it, and the process that
was happening to it as the days went by. I learned how
important compost is in having a sustainable garden, it’s
one thing to read the importance out of a book, but to
actually see it first hand and be a part of it, and then see
it being used in a thriving garden is something you’ll
never get out of a book. I’m thoroughly happy my group
and I choose to do a hands on community service project
that really opened our eyes on some of the measures we
can take to become a sustainable planet once again.

24. Team member 4 Reflection
 I learned that sustainability can be taken or done in
many different forms. I believe that sustainability is
living naturally. After doing our project I realized
that every little thing counts and it does make a
difference. Whether its starting a garden or even a
lone plant, there is hope for a better future. Its never
too late to make a difference. After being a part of
this project I am thankful for having the
opportunity to participate and be involved with the
children from Pahoa. Not only was i able to teach
them, they were able to teach me. It all starts with
our younger generations and if we are able to
educate them today, tomorrow will be a better day.

25. We would like to thank the teachers and students at
Pahoa High and Intermediate school for allowing us to
come in and participate in their compost project. You
guys have taught us the importance of reusing natural
waste.
We would like to thank Bodhi Searles, co-coordinator
of the Kaiao Garden. Without her enthusiasm and
warm welcome, we would have not learned the
importance of creating a garden.